Bold and beautiful Bollywood actresses

Bollywood is no longer home to the coy actress draped in a sari, running around trees.

The scope of a Bollywood actress was very limited, apart from being the actor's arm candy, around 10 years back. Today, the actresses are able enough to carry a film on their able shoulders. To be in the top league, an actress needs to shed her inhibitions and there are still very few actresses who can dare to go out of their way to make their characters believable. Here are some actresses who are truly bold while being beautiful at the same time.

Vidya Balan

Vidya Balan has never shied away from pushing the limit whenever her roles have demanded it from her. Though she has a pretty non-glamorous image off screen, she knows how to set the silver screen on fire. With 'The Dirty Picture', Vidya went all out to get under the skin of the late Silk Smitha and has already been exploded with compliments from all quarters.

Neha Dhupia

Neha Dhupia began her career with films like 'Qayamat', 'Julie', 'Sheesha' etc. which were mainly successful at grabbing eyeballs because of her skimpy outfits and her dare-to-bare acts. Arjun Rampal even went on to say the 'Sheesha' was one of the sleaziest films he had seen in recent times. Neha has moved up in her career and is still considered to be one of the boldest actresses around.

Mallika Sherawat

Mallika Sherawat has made her entire career based on her ability to shed clothes. Her first film 'Murder' made her an overnight sensation in the country and though her other films could not perform as well at the box-office, her daring approach in the industry has little but changed.

Bipasha Basu

During her early modeling days, Bipasha shot for an underwear ad with Dino Morea which ended up being banned for being too vulgar for Indian mindsets. In John Abraham's launch vehicle 'Jism', she played the role of a woman who uses seduction to manipulate a young man to get what she wants. In 'Jism' and every other film, Bipasha has played her role to perfection irrespective of exposure or criticism from conservative people.

Kareena Kapoor

Kareena Kapoor has come a long way since her debut as a gawky looking girl in her first film 'Refugee'. Slowly but unsteadily, Kareena has grown to a great level of maturity in her acting career. Kareena, like others in the list has never let issues of going beyond the usual song and dance routine come in her way. Her topless act in the 'Kurbaan' set a lot of tongues wagging. However it hasn't deterred the actress and is already shooting for 'Heroine' which is rumored to have a number of lovemaking scenes. (Entertainment, MensXP.com)